Apparatus for cooling hydrocarbon gases and vapors at high temperatures



Dec. 14,192

A. A. F. M. SEIGLE APPARATUS FOR COOLING HYDROCARBON GASES AND. VAPORS AT HIGH TEMPERATURES Filed August 11 Jug/e, W

his H TORNEY 50 The cylinderB having at the base.'there the. {with the following'various admission or dis charge'apertures; E for the inIetY-of -the hydrocarbon -vapors,- D 'for the discharge of Patented Dec. -14, 1926.

UNITED STATES TENT- oF -ica,

. AnoLrnE-AnromnrRAncoIs MARI-US SEIGLE, cereals, Eamon] TEMPERATURES.

Application filed Augu t 11, 1921, Serial No. 491,382, and, in France July 25, 1918.

from furnaces, gas retorts or likeapparatus employed for distillation, pyrogenation or 'thermo-chemical reactions such for instance as are employed in the mineral oil industry, the said cooling being however. carried out 7 10 with avery considerable absorption of. heat and is also regulated in a sufliciently easymanner. 4

This cooling operation, which may be termed primary cooling, usually precedes- 'lfl the operations of complementary fractional c'ondensation.and final cooling, these being carried out conjointly with. the former, by the-use of known cooling or temperature exchanging devices. I

f This .inventionwill be understoodfrom the followingdescription, given solely by way of example, of a special application to the thermochemical treatment of the more orpless liquid or tarry residues of-the distillatio'n of schistous sandstone, lignite, peat, crude'oil, rich coal, and the like. For this application, the primary cooling apparatus is Preferably constructed accordin to the device shown in the accompanying drawings wherein:

' Fig. 1 is a Vertical section of the whole. apparatus. Figs. 2 and 3- are horizontal sections on the lines 22 and i3-3, Fig. 1.

The cooling apparatus comprises an outer receptacle ofsheet iron or steel A and a sec ond receptacle secured in a more or less permanent manner at the middle part of the former. This innrreceptacle is constituted chiefly of three cylindrical'or conical por-.

40 tions which as far as possible are made in a single piece of'cast'iron, steel or the like, or, in' other cases constructed by boiler'work of sheet iron, copper or other metal andsolidly secured together in order to afford a suflicient heat-conducting capacity for the.

assemblage tormed by the parts above mentioned.

These three "parts comprise the following members:

"offa circular'flange which is bolted to' bottom of the receptacle A. I The conical member B connecting the said 0 linder'B with the upper conical mBlIl-f' -ber which is closed at the bottom by a".

disk J aving therein a set of. concentric I apertur. s ad1acentthe circumference, Fig.1.

to some extent the central annex-of the o ter receptacle-A by the use of the two hog zontal connecting tubes y and 2, Figs. 1. an 3. I

The cylindrical chamber A which constitutff foo - The said'cyl-indrical chamber A is closed-- 1'). 'The lower aperture of'thecylinder B is closed by the bottom of the receptacle A l and by a disc 1'' of cast iron, steel or' bronze therewith the central tube Upon the said thick disc'r are screwed two cocks F, 'F,

' one of these being .provided with the tube F which extends up into the cylinder B, Figs.1and'2.

[In .the annular space between the: central chamber A" and the inner wall of thecone C are disposed successively the three metal plates '00 which rest upon suitable-supports m, Fig. 1. Two of the said plates have fradially extending-portions cut out to pro vide for disposing the said plates below the connecting tube 3 Figs. 1 and 3. The three plates w have formed therein concentric sets of apertures K, the apertures of each plate being staggered relative to the a erture in the adjacent plates. The staggere arrangement of the-apertures causes a tortuous flow of fluid through the apparatus as indicated by'the arrows, Fig. 1. he discr extendsinside the above mentioned annular space and acts itself as a bafile with respect to theaper-. ture in the upper plateau The operation of mounting the plates m and the. disc 'I', is

carried out at the same. time as the fillingwhich issuitable for the thermo=chemical treatment of the heavy hydrocarbons above mentioned. At the end of these simultaconsistsin providingfor the good condition 'neous operations the cover D is hermetically secured to the cone C; The last measure I and tightness of the piping hi h. i u 1 he non-condensed; vapors, cock F provided of considerable thickness and having cast" with the tube F" for observing theffilling of the cylinder B with the products of condensation, cock F for'the discharge of the latter, cock G for the inlet of the boiling water, and cock H for the discharge of the ste m.

aving now described the method of constructing the said apparatus and 'of' disposing the same in working order, this apparabeing almost entirely filled with water which is already heated to the desired boiling point, this operation being readily observed by the pressure gauge L'Fig. 1. A cock or valve, not shown, is then opened to connect the tube E for instance with the discharge tube of a retort whereinis carried out the distillation of a more or less pyrogenic character of a certain quantity of fuel oil or astatki, at ahigh temperature, say 450 C. The'hydrocarbon vapors thus introduced through the tube E will flow into the portions B, B of the apparatus, expanding at the same time, and will proceed through the sets of baflie holes as shown by the arrows, Fig. 1, and throughout the whole mass of iron turnings, granulated iron or like material which as above stated are caused to fill up the entire annular space between the inner cylinder A and the conical member C.

It should however be remembered that the said cooling and expansion apparatus is brought either by means of the outer surfaces of the cylinder B and the cones B and G or by the inner surface of the cylinder A almost entirely in direct contact with water which has already reached the boiling point. If on the other hand it isconsidered that the vaporization of the water will absorb in a practically instantaneous manner at least ten times the quantity of heat'absorbed by the same water more 'or less slowly when risin from 10 to 60, as occurs in a consider ab e number of'r the known cooling apparatus, it will be readily observed that when passing through'the various internal parts of the expansion cooling apparatus herein described, the more or less pyrogenic and gasified vapors will be incompletely but very guickly cooled, and willexpan'd and become ecomposed or depolymerized to a greater or less degree, thereby setting free a considerable portion of their heat, this latter-being thereupon absorbed by the instantaneous vaporization of a corresponding quantity of Water which had been already brought to the boiling oint.

The supp ying of the chambers A A with already-heated water is easily and economically carried. out, especially by the use of water which has been already used for cool ing the final cooling or fractional condensation devices which are traversed by the vapors and gases discharged from the pri-' mary cooling condenser. But. as in this first operation the water in question has not been raised to a high temperature, it may be em-. ployedto good advantage as a spray for condensing the steam discharged from the chambers A A through the valve or cook H, whereby this Water will be finally brought to' a sufiiciently high temperature. Ah economical supplementary heating of .the feed water for the chambers A A may'also be obtained by the use of the heat of the gases of combustion of the furnace pertaining to the distillation retort above mentioned,

According to the pressure maintained in the chambers A A, the temperature will rise to a greater or less degree within the condenser. In us'ual practice, this pressure is more or less above atmospheric pressure, but should it become necessary to reduce the said temperature, this may be carried out by reducing the pressure of vaporization of the water in the chambers A A, and if required this may be reduced considerably below atmospheric pressure. To carry this out, it will suflice to draw 01f the vapor more or less rapidly through the passage H, by means of a pump or like device.

Moreover it is possible also to regulate the temperature of. the'boiling water by adding a certain and variable quantity of chloride of calcium for instance.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is;

1.,In anapparatus for cooling hydrocarbon gases and vapors the combination of a vertical receptacle, a central chamber extending axially through said receptacle,

means for admitting the supply of the hydrocarbon gases and vapors to be treated to the space Within said receptacle and around said central chamber, a jacket surrounding said receptacle, means for supplying coolv ing fluid to said central chamber and to the space between said jacket andsaidrecepta to be treated to the lower end of said receptable, "a central chamber closed at both ends within said receptacle and extending axially through the upper part thereof, a jacket surrounding said receptacle, means for supplying cooling fluid to the spacev betweensaid j acketand said receptacle, means affording communication between said central chamber and said space, horizontal cross" plates supported within said receptacle and around said central chamber, apertures-in said plates, the apertures of-one plate being so disposed with respect to the apertures in the adjacent plates as to provide a tortuous how of the gases and vaporsthrough said receptacle and an outlet at the upper part of said receptacle forthe non-condensed gases or vapors.

3. In an apparatus for cooling hydrocarbon gases and vapors the combination" of a vertical receptacle, means for admitting the supply of the hydrocarbon gases and vapors to be treated to the lower end of said receptacle, a central chamber closed at both ends within said receptacle andextending axially through the upperpart thereof, a jacket surroundlng said receptacle, means for supplying to the space between said jacket and said receptacle water under-predetermined pr'es-- sure and at a temperature substantially equal to the boiling temperature corresponding to said pressure,'means affording communication between said central chamber and said space, horizontal cross plates supported within said receptacle and around said central chamber, apertures in, said plates, the apertures of one plate being so disposed with respect "to theapertures of the adja-- tal plates for the chemical treatment of said hydrocarbongases and vapors.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ADOLPHE ANTOINE FRANCOIS MARIUS SEIGLE. 

